Thurrock Council’s work to identify potholes before they develop has been recognised with a 2017 Highways Award.

Pothole-spotter, funded by the Department for Transport, uses high definition cameras attached to bin lorries to take quality pictures of roads and pavements across Thurrock.

The integrated navigation system and intelligent software – developed in partnership with two private-sector organisations, Soenecs and Gaist – build up an image library of Thurrock’s highways and help officers identify problems before they become potholes.

The Highways Awards’ judges said the ‘high quality and frequently refreshed information on potholes across networks [provides] great potential for development’.

“This award is for those who are making a significant improvement to the highways industry and through pothole spotter we are contributing to the wider industry as well as improving roads for our residents.”

Thurrock Council was also shortlisted in the Highways Maintenance Efficiency Award category for its programme to replace street lighting with energy efficient LED lanterns.